Valta's Blog | valta.nl

Back to painting I've tried to paint Chester again, combining a dog portrait with interior painting. It seemed like a perfect setting when I saw him routinely enjoying the sun's rays while in our attic in Zwolle. It turned out to be difficult to choose the right values for the background; I still have a lot to learn about how to convey depth with dark objects in the foreground. Is it a coincidence (I am wondering now) that I recently visited the Transverse Orientation by genius Dimitris Papaioannou where he deliberately opted for the lighter background of his masterpiece? I used the limited palette again; red, yellow and blue plus burnt umber and white. Thus it became Chester the Sun Worshiper, acrylic, canvas 24 x 30 cm. The finished painting can be found in my gallery .

Completed and realised I am happy with this small but beautiful art project that I have carried out in a very short period of time in collaboration with Amelander Artists and De Amelander Musea . From July 1, 2021, three Amelander art photographers will exhibit 25 works of art in the De Amelander Vuurtoren Museum in Hollum. This will be a permanent exhibition where visitors can also order a print of the photos in different sizes and on various materials via the website amelanderkunstenaars.nl/vuurtoren , which I also made. So, this way you may soon have a beautiful piece of Ameland hanging on your wall!

Something different It seems that my annual winter depression this year, due to the lockdown and the unusually sunless, cold and wet spring, lasted for half a year instead of a few weeks. I was of course happy to be able to paint and read, but I was also thrilled to discover many interesting courses at Coursera , which I loved to audit. And that was not few. Proud of this list so far. But I don't intend to stop. I like to learn. So there's still a lot planned, maybe after the summer break. Hoping that this long depression is finally over, I am now fully enjoying the nature around us and our garden again. And I'm also working now on a new small but nice art project for our island. I hope to report on that very soon. So, see you soon, and take good care of your mental health, and of the others.  

Spring has finally come Another painting of another corner of our village. The almost four centuries old but perfectly preserved buildings of the neighbouring museum look lovely and romantic at every season. This year the unusual weather made our ancient pear trees blossom quite late. So I was happy to catch and paint this small scenery. Using again the limited palette of blue, red and yellow, plus white and burnt umber. Will we get a nice crop of pears this summer? Well, have a good summer everyone! So it became the Bij Sorgdrager, acrylic, canvas 30x24 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

Some more alcohol I found this setting with lots of different shadows and the sharp but cool sunlight quite exciting. And I love that luminous effect you can achieve by mixing red, yellow and burned umber. The old famous liquor of our island has recently changed its bottle design, and as we were happy to receive a new one from our new friends, I thought it could have been good to paint the old and the new one next to each other. Well, 'proost!' And try it yourself once. The name is Nobeltje ;) So it became the Transitions, acrylic, canvas 20x20 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

Sunday Lunch gets a new home The month of May proves to be full of surprises, again. Except it still unusually feels like winter outside, some good news came unexpectedly from Saatchi Art where a couple of my paintings are being exhibited. They have sold the Sunday Lunch to a collector in Virginia. The painting is now thoroughly packed and labelled and is on its way to the United States. I am proud. I am hoping that the new owner will be happy with their new original painting and that the painting itself will get a new lovely home. Excited, this is such a stimulating happening! Bye, for now, gotta rush back to my easel.

"L'inverno non finisce mai..." Just like in the old and lovely Italian song; this winter seems to never end now but we still have nice memories. Strawberries are one of those fine connections to keep you warm and hoping. I love having my strawberries cut in half with some drops of old Aceto Balsamico. That's why I now tried to paint this all in the setting of our old blue kitchen. Yes, still using the limited palette. Still hoping for good and warm news to come very soon. Please don't give up, you too. So it became the Strawberries, acrylic, canvas board 24x30 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

Last days of winter Christmas memories are nice even when it is (cold) March outside. I like to bake my own version of Christmas pudding with lots of fruit, both dried and fresh. I took some photographs last December and now I find them worthy of making a small painting. Still using the limited palette of Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, Ultramarine plus Burnt Umber and Titanium White. Well, happy Christmas then! So it became the Festive Season, acrylic, canvas 24x30 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

Back to still life When life literally gets almost still, you sometimes need a good shot of old single malt. Well, I do. And I like how it looks in a crystal glass. So, using again the limited palette of Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, Ultramarine plus Burnt Umber and Titanium White, I tried to catch and paint the warmth of that noble liquid. Well, here's to us! So it became the Glass of Whiskey, acrylic, canvas 30x24 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

Going on with our Southwest When the strong sunlight breaks through the rapidly moving dark clouds, you can accidentally get that special warm feeling of hope, which for a moment helps you to go on, makes you expect better times, believing. The South-West part of our beach often has such sceneries. I love to watch those great nature shows. I have now tried to paint one. So it became the Buien boven Zuidwest, acrylic, canvas 20x20 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

Storm approaching The tower of the Magnus church used to serve as a beacon for ships for centuries. It can be seen well from the Wadden Sea and also from the beach, even though it is now half hidden behind the dike. A lovely beach where I often walk with Chester . Sometimes the low winter sun plays with the approaching heavy clouds full of rain, and then it produces dramatic images. I tried to capture this effect. So it became the Southwest. A Storm is Coming, acrylic, canvas 30x30 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

A new start. Landscaping again Glad I finally got myself to paint again. There is a nice little space next to our street with a marvellous view of the meadows, dunes and the dyke. The stable with a red door and barns in the backyard of our good neighbours Jeroen and Yvonne make the setting look cosy, rural and peaceful. The winter sky on a windy and wet day gives a piece of hope that the bright light is still there, approaching. I am still using the limited palette of Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, Ultramarine, Burnt Umber and Titanium White. So it became the Stal achter Burenlaan te Hollum, acrylic, canvas 24x30 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

Some good news This strange and sad year is finishing rather fine, at least for my artistic affairs. Another still life of mine, Triple Pleasure , has been recently sold, including the handmade frame. It's hanging now on the wall of a good home, which makes me feel very proud again. And, the art auction that my fellow island artists were holding in December, seemed to be quite successful. I am happy to support them with webmastering. Fifteen artworks have been sold (my early "Sunflowers" among them), raising a total of 1.700 Euro. The raised money is to be gifted to ASL Nederland . And, I have been accepted to show and sell some of my paintings with Saatchi Art. You can find them here . Let's hope there is still luck. Have a safe and sane 2021!

Street view We had a lovely long and calm autumn this year. No early heavy storm, so the leaves were able to get their dramatic colours on time while still on trees. The low but still warm sunlight against the heavy dark clouds full of cold showers made the contrast even more striking giving the scenery quite a cosy effect. The young linden trees along the neighbouring Herenweg street in our village make a perfect setting for a painting, I thought. I've tried to catch this effect here, still using a limited palette (red, yellow, blue + white and burnt umber) So it became the Herenweg te Hollum, acrylic, 30x24 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

Online exhibition Despite the famous annual Kunstmaand Ameland exhibitions being cancelled due to the covid times, a group of enthusiastic island artists decided to go online together to show their artworks to the world. I am happy to make myself and my skills useful, as I was asked to make a website for this group called AK (Amelander Kunstenaars). It just went live! We already show the works of twenty artists now, and there are many more to join very soon. So, feel free to visit our new website amelanderkunstenaars.nl , and enjoy the art of the most beautiful island in the North Sea.

The autumnal one I am going on with my experiment on painting with a very limited palette. This time I even omitted red and used only Ultramarine, Burnt Umber, Cadmium Yellow and Titanium White. We have harvested a good crop of Doyenné du Comice pears, and this couple of them looked nicely on the sunlit windowsill along the stoneware flask I bought years ago in Alsace so I decided to paint the setting. So it became the Comice Pears, acrylic, 30x24 cm. The result is to be seen in My gallery .

A new challenge Mixing (almost) every colour from three primary colours is quite possible, say my books and the YouTube painters I follow. As I am still using the 16 colour tubes of paint that I got long ago in a gift box, I have never been thoroughly thinking of using a limited palette. During a recent painting session, my fellow amateur artists and I started a kind of challenge to try out a limited palette. I made a still-life setting, and I chose the three-plus-two formula (Cadmium Red, Cadmium Yellow, Ultramarine as primary colours and Burnt Umber and Titanium White as support) to bring it over on canvas. Well, though I did not really match every colour with the photograph, I am quite satisfied with the result. A fellow painter did the same and she produced really good artwork. So we proved that the use of a limited palette is actually almost unlimited. I think I will go on with this experiment. Here you can see the photograph of the setting and the painting in progress. Let's ...

Hope Hope Hope It feels like the new art season starts nicely. At the moment it looks like the annual November exhibition of the Art Month Ameland goes on. I am happy to participate this year again with some of my new paintings. Hopefully, we will receive lots of art lovers in our galleries again. And the first painting of this season has been sold! I am very happy and proud that one of my favourite works, 'Downstairs' , has now a new home. I hope the new owners will enjoy it for a very long time.

Making my own old-fashioned ones Since I find the frame to be a very important part of a painting, I have always been making my own frames for my works. It is not an easy, time-consuming but satisfying job. I like my frames made of real wood, in a modest classical style and painted preferably black, sometimes with a golden border. Some art lovers find this choice too sober/heavy/old-fashioned but it is my choice at the moment. I exhibit and sell my paintings always with my handmade frames. When a customer prefers to have their own frame or even no frame at all, a considerable price discount is possible. Because a handmade frame does cost money.

Honoured and flattered What can I say... Just really proud to read back a nice article written about my paintings by an awesome artist and author, Gonneke Braakman. Hoping this will bring more inspiration and luck with the coming exhibition in November to all of us. Fingers crossed! And yes! Come and see yourself, each November is a great Art Month on the island of Ameland.

Summer still life Yes, the nice summer seems to be back again so I thought why not try to paint something outside. We love to picnic sometimes when the weather allows, so the setting and composition were not difficult to find. Loved to learn to catch the light and shadows on the cloth. Nice experience, need to practice painting these textures more. Let's picnic. Acrylic, canvas, 30x24 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Tea from far away Inspired by another traditional event in our village. It is a kind of public diner with a theme of historic international meals, and this time it was one of my backgrounds. I was glad to help to organise it. The story of a tea tradition was a part of the evening. My partner and I are lucky to possess an old traditional Russian water boiler, called a samovar, from 1880. So we were proud to show it and tell its story. This all made me paint this small still life set up in our kitchen. Tea from far away. Acrylic, canvas board, 30x24 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Magnus by candlelight The medieval St. Magnus church in our village is small but beautiful in its simplicity. Sometimes for special occasions, it is only lit by the real candles in the three 18th-century chandeliers, which makes the church cosy and majestic at the same time. I now tried to paint that effect. Interior of St Magnus church in Hollum. Acrylic, canvas board, 24x30 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Still going strong (as it seems) Painting interiors seems to be the thing I quite like. Another week of lockdown, another corner of our house. This time I tried to paint our little hero Chester as well. He sometimes loves to sleep on the sofa (when allowed by the strict humans), especially when the sun gives him a long warm kiss. I am content with this first "portrait", so I hope I one day will paint more of Chester, or even of other animals, like maybe my self-portrait :-) At home. Acrylic, canvas, 24x30 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Gone but not forgotten A friend who I admire for her phenomenal knowledge and memory of people and places of our island, has found an old photograph of a forge, an old smith workshop that was run by her grandfather. Sadly, the building doesn't exist anymore. Some fellow island artists announced they would attempt making a painting or a drawing based on the photograph. I am trying now to make my own translation of this scenery. I am wondering how is it to paint something based on an old black-and-white photograph that has no quite defined shadows. Never done before. I tried to change the perspective as well but without destroying the actual details. Very interesting but quite a challenge, I must admit my fantasy is not as developed as I hoped. But nevertheless, here it is. I hope she will like it. Oude smederij. Acrylic, canvas board, 18x24 cm.

Another interior Last year I painted the sunny Amelander Interieur with pleasure. This time I am trying to paint the other part of our sitting room lit by the lamps at night. Love to work on it and to learn how colours can totally change by the dark and electric light. Amelander interior. Night. Acrylic, canvas, 30x24 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Wash your hands In late February I was lucky to visit the Huis van Eysinga in Leeuwarden before everything was forever closed. It was a cold day with showers and the sun changing rapidly. The house was almost empty except for some staff so I had enough time and a good opportunity to explore this well-preserved piece of the art of living. It is a nice concept they are using there; unlike in most museums, here you may touch and try everything. It was great to go through both up- and downstairs. While in the large original kitchen, you almost are expecting to hear Mrs Bridges' voice shouting "Ruby, scrub them potatoes!" I loved the light falling into that beautifully tiled scullery, on the ancient sink and the copper bucket. So, I am now trying to paint that effect on canvas. Downstairs. Acrylic, canvas, 24x30 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

View from the kitchen The sun shines a lot these days, providing lovely light effects on buildings and gardens in the village. The traditional farms and houses across the yard look very cosy in those lights and shadows. I took a photograph on such an afternoon. Thought it would perhaps be good to use it as a source for a new small painting. Hollum. Spring. Acrylic, canvas, 24x30 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Sunrise in our village Got up early for a change and caught the first sun rays touching the rooftops on a cold morning in late March. There was hope for a lovely day, there is a hope for better future. Stay safe and enjoy the tiny little things around you. The most beautiful of them are free of charge. Roofs of Hollum. Sunrise. Acrylic, canvas, 30x24 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

An empty street I love this small old street in the genteel medieval city of Zwolle. So I loved to paint it. The winter sun in the morning hesitantly turns the old roofs bright orange. Another day, full of hope, begins. Stay safe, everyone. Walstraat in Zwolle, acrylic, canvas board, 24x30 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

An old small romantic passage When visiting the beautiful city of Kampen, Overijssel, I accidentally came across a narrow and quiet street passage in the historic centre. I loved the scenery, so I took a photograph. Now I wanted to make a small painting of it. There was no sun, it was cold and windy and the roofs and pavements around were covered with moss. Time seemed to stand still. This was the nice old Dutch winter I love. A small street in Kampen, acrylic, canvas, 25x25 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Salicornia fields after a thunderstorm. The quick small study of a landscape that I made last week, had to be painted on canvas. So I thought. So I did. Autumn behind the Hollum dyke, acrylic, canvas, 24x30 cm. See the final version in My gallery . UPDATE December 2022: on show Amelander Kunst XL in a museum

Salicornia fields behind the dyke Inspired by Félix Ziem's rainbow sky that I have finally seen in real last week in the Gouda Museum, I tried to paint a quick small study of a landscape. The actual setting goes back to September when I took a photograph of our beautiful tidal fields full of salicornia which have turned into a wonderful rusty carpet by that time. A storm was approaching. The sun broke accidentally through the heavy dark clouds. Then autumn made its entrance. Hope to make a larger version of this soon. Achter de dijk bij Hollum (study), acrylic, paper, approximately 9x20 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Winter morning through the rear window in Zwolle Inspired both by the view of this historic and intimate place and by Hitchcock's film, I am making a new cityscape painting. I like the low morning sun producing that shadow line. Tried to catch it. Though I would rather prefer to set the buildings more impressionistic, like the church here, I am mostly satisfied with the result. The sky remains the thing I still have to learn to paint. Rear Window, acrylic, paper, 34x28 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Roofing The small study I made last year seemed to be quite challenging, so now there is a larger version of it. Based on the real view from our attic, though I've played with perspective a little bit. Roofs of Hollum, acrylic, canvas board, 24x30 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Proost! Another festive season is over and it is nice to relax reading something useful in the evenings or just having good coffee with some quality liquor. Or both. And maybe to paint again. Some lovely people I was happy to meet last year, thought for a moment and by mistake that my first name was Valta. Since those people are artists themselves, I actually found this a good idea to sign my paintings from now on with "valta". Let's hope it will bring luck and inspiration :) Triple pleasure, acrylic, canvas board, 30x24 cm. See the final version in My gallery .

Sold! Exhibiting with the AAK during the Ameland Art Month brings me luck again. Four paintings are sold so far. Including the self-made frames. I am very proud and happy that people appreciate my art. I am also very proud to exhibit among the dozens of most talented artists of our island. You can find the pictures of my paintings in My gallery .

Another small still life Inspired by a fellow amateur painter, I have tried a new setting with books and a candle. Glad to discover that red can be so luminous! Books and a candle, acrylic, paperboard, approximately 14 x 19 cm. See the final version in My gallery .